Handling Standards of Conduct Incidents

This document is for event organizers and volunteers and provides guidelines on handling violations of the standards of conduct as well as incident complaints from attendees. The actual standards of conduct are described in a separate document provided to all attendees by the conference organizers.

SoC Event Committee

All TPF events will have a per-event Standards of Conduct committee appointed to act as the designated authority for all issues related to the standards of conduct for each event. The membership of this committee may vary from event to event.

This committee will typically include a mix of Perl Foundation board members, conference organizers, and community volunteers.

The committee for this conference is:

Jim Brandt

Lena Hand

Dave Rolsky

Dan Wright

Warnings

Any event organizer or volunteer can issue a verbal warning to a participant, letting them know that their behavior violates the event’s standards of conduct. Warnings should be reported to event organizers as soon as practical. The report should include:

Identifying information about the participant(s) (name, appearance, clothing, etc.) given a warning.

The time of day the warning was issued.

The behavior that was in violation.

The approximate time of the behavior (if different than the time of warning).

Presentations

Presentations or similar events should not be stopped for one-time gaffes or minor problems, although an event organizer or a volunteer should speak to the presenter afterward. However, organizers and volunteers should take immediate action to politely and calmly stop any presentation or event that repeatedly or seriously violates the anti-harassment policy. For example, simply say "I’m sorry, this presentation cannot be continued at the present time" and provide no further explanation.

Taking Reports

Whenever possible, event organizers or volunteers should direct complaints to a member of the SoC Event Committee. However, that may not always be possible, and organizers or volunteers should be prepared to handle an incident report.

When taking a report from someone experiencing harassment, you should record what they say and reassure them they are being taken seriously, but avoid making specific promises about what actions will be taken in response. Ask for any other information if the reporter has not volunteered it (such as time and place) but do not pressure them to provide it if they are reluctant. If the reporter desires it, arrange for an escort by an organizer, volunteer, or a trusted person, contact a friend, and contact local law enforcement. Do not pressure the reporter to take any action if they do not want to do it.

Identifying information about the participant(s) (name, appearance, clothing, etc.) being complained about, as well as the person(s) making the complaint.

The behavior that led to the complaint.

The approximate time of the incident.

The circumstances surrounding the incident.

Your identity.

Other people involved in the incident.

Please note that we typically will not take action based on a single anonymous complaint.

Contacting Security or Local Authorities

If the person reporting the incident says that they were physically hurt or felt afraid for their safety, then the person taking the report should offer to help contact venue security and local authorities. If you are taking a report, you are encouraged to ask the reporter if they were hurt or felt afraid for their safety.

Expulsion

An event participant may be expelled by the decision of SoC Event Committee for whatever reasons they deem sufficient. However, here are some general guidelines for when a participant should be expelled:

A second offense resulting in a warning.

Continuing to harass after any “no” or “stop” instruction.

A pattern of harassing behavior with or without warnings.

A single serious offense, e.g., groping someone or a physical assault.

A single obviously intentional and extreme offense.

Participants who are expelled because of a violation of the SoC are not entitled to a refund of any conference fees.

Public Statements

As a general rule, event organizer and volunteers should not make any public statements about the behavior of individual people during or after the event.

Summary

In general, consult with the SoC committee as well as other event organizers and volunteers when possible, but act when necessary.